The present invention relates to a guide roller of a magnetic tape drive, and more particular to a technique of a guide roller for guiding a magnetic tape for use in a half-inch cartridge magnetic tape drive.
Conventionally, the guide roller has been used for the purpose of carrying the magnetic tape into a precise position in the magnetic tape drive (JP-U1989-174735A, JPP1993-135444A, and JP-P1996-329564A).
The guide roller was described in JP-U1989-174735A that was composed of a roller rotatably supported by a supporting shaft, and flanges mounted on said supporting shaft so as to be positioned in both of the upper and lower ends of this roller. And, a spiral-shaped groove section was formed on the outer periphery surface of the roller.
Also, there is the description with regard to the guide roller in JP-P1993-135444A as well. This guide roller is composed of a fixed section, which does not rotate against a rotating center shaft, and two rotating rollers that are rotatable. The fixed section is arranged in the center in the tape-width direction. The rotating rollers are arranged in both ends of the fixed section in the tape-width direction. Thereby, a force, which causes the tape to approach toward the fixed section arranged in the center that does not rotate, always occurs. For this reason, a regulating force from the flanges that exist in both ends is alleviated. A result is that stable tape traveling, which causes less damage to the tape, materializes.
Furthermore, there is the description with regard to the guide roller in JP-P1996-329564A as well. A number of grooves for delivering the magnetic tape, which are spaced circumferentially, and extend in parallel to each other, are formed on the outer periphery of a feed roller. These grooves for delivering the magnetic tape are configured so that the directions of forces for delivering the magnetic tape point toward the center from both ends in the axial direction of the feed roller, and yet ahead in the rotating direction. This is a configuration for maintaining the status that the magnetic tape is arranged in the center in the axial direction of the feed roller.
However, the guide roller described in JP-U1989-174735A had the problem that the traveling direction of the tape did not stabilized in the event that the tape traveling changed drastically. This is because the tape has direction dependency of moving to one end or the other end depending upon the direction of the tape traveling, due to the spiral-shaped groove formed on the outer periphery surface of the roller only in the one-way direction.
Also, the guide roller described in JP-P1993-135444A had the problem that working efficiency in processing the guide roller dropped. This is because the parts item became numerous, and the manufacturing step and the assembling man-hour became numerous, due to the rotating rollers provided in the both ends with the fixed section interposed.
The guide roller described in JP-P1996-329564A has the roller of which at least the outer periphery surface was configured of an elastic member. And, for the purpose of realizing the stability of the tape traveling, the linearly symmetric groove is formed on the outer periphery surface of the roller in double-end direction.
However, in the event that the roller was configured of a rigid member, when forming the groove having the identical shape to that of the foregoing on the roller is intended, a special tool is required in some cases, and the problem existed that the working efficiency in processing the roller dropped.